DISCOVER WINERIES WITH EASE

Jones Family Vineyards

About

Jones Family Vineyards is a family run winery with the singular focus of producing the finest wines from our estate vineyards in the Calistoga hillside. The potential of our unique locations to produce three outstanding wines. The youngest of our estate grown vines and has evolved into a wine that is quintessential. While it tends to be one that can be enjoyed upon release, we also find it benefits from cellaring as well.

Location Description

Located in the heart of Calistoga, California.

Contact

Fax: 707 942 0467

Features

Producing the finest wines from our special vineyards.

Additional Information

Meeting / Conference Facilities:

Caves:

Wedding Facilities:

Picnic Facilities:

Dog Friendly:

Winery Tours:

Wine Tasting:

Art or Architecture:

Organic / Biodynamic:

Awards:

Wine Club:

Lodging / Bed & Breakfast:

Winemaker

Thomas Rivers Brown:

Thomas Rivers Brown is one of the most exciting young talents in Napa Valley. Born in Sumter, South Carolina, Thomas developed an interest in wine while at the University of Virginia. Later he expanded his knowledge of wines from all the world's great regions while working at All Seasons Wine Shop in Calistoga. Beginning at Turley Estate in the late 1990s, and continuing today at Schrader, Maybach Cellars and others, he crafts beautiful wines that speak of the land and conditions that created them. When asked how he defines great wine, Thomas responds, "I can't really define it, but I know it when I taste it." 2007 was Thomas's first vintage with Jones Family Vineyards. Each year he continues to improve the quality of our wines by working closely with the vineyard team and using small lot fermentation and blending.

Heidi Peterson Barrett:

Heidi Peterson Barrett grew up in a winemaking family and was destined to become one of California's leading winemakers. In 1998 Robert Parker listed her as only one of two US based wine heroines and dubbed her the “first lady of wine.” As the winemaker for Jones Family Vineyards vintages 1996 to 2006 she launched our Estate Cabernet Sauvignon and The Sisters.

History

In 1992 Sally and Rick Jones found a gorgeous view that came with a few acres of vineyards. A retirement home; a family place was what they had in mind. After selling grapes to Stag’s Leap Winery for a few years Rick tasted the unblended wine made from the vineyard’s fruit and decided it was too good to let it be blended away in someone else’s wine. Jones Family Vineyards was born from this in 1996.

The Team

Rick Jones:

Rick Jones is a life long lover of wine who developed a passion for grapes while living in France in the 1970’s. After returning to the States he made wine on occasion with friends. In between grape stomps he had successful careers at McKinsey & Company and Safeway. After retiring from Safeway to spend more time with Sally, he realized that retirement in the traditional sense was not his style. As a result, Rick founded Jones Family Vineyards in 1996 as a family run partnership and continues an active role in its operation serving as CEO. Never one to slow down, Rick is highly involved with the Napa Valley community serving on the boards of the St. Helena Hospital, the Napa Valley Community Foundation, the Napa Valley Vintners, as well as Napa Learns and the national organization, Raising a Reader. His most beloved role is as Pop-Pop to his 4 grandchildren, Maddie, Lindsey, Georgia and Graham.

Sally Jones (1945-2005):

Born in Seattle, Washington it wasn’t initially clear that Sally was destined to be part of a winemaking family, but her mark is indelible on Jones Family Vineyards. A trained interior decorator and party planner extraordinaire, the look and feel of our Estate and gardens are the result of her taste and tireless efforts. Her feeling that the vines were looking unkempt was one thing that prompted Rick to call David Abreu about managing the vineyard. Her famous “fickle finger of fate” started a partnership that continues today.

Sally battled a rare lung condition ( alpha-1 antitripsine deficiency) for decades and survived a lung transplant. Fortunately, she lived long enough to see our winemaking project grow, enjoy some of the lifestyle of the Napa Valley, and meet the first member of our third generation, her oldest granddaughter Madeline.

A horticulturalist at heart, the entry garden at St. Helena Hospital will be named in her honor. Plans are underway to transform the space into an inviting spot that honors the healing powers of nature.

Stephanie Jones Bailey:

Rick and Sally’s oldest daughter joined the winery in 2003 after earning an MBA from Stanford and enjoying a successful career in corporate apparel retail at Old Navy. Seeking to balance both work and family, she took on the jobs no one loved (compliance and operations.) Stephanie now works side by side with Heather on all aspects of running the winery day to day. Stephanie and Daniel Bailey were married at the Vineyard in October 2002, allowing Sally's ultimate party planning dreams to come to life!

Madeline and Lindsey Bailey are Stephanie and Dan’s daughters and are the first two members of the third generation. While well under 21, each have a wine named after them that mom and dad have in safe keeping for them!

Heather Jones Melvin:

In 1999, when Jones Family Vineyards was establishing itself in the marketplace, Heather launched the sales and marketing of Jones Family Vineyards. In the last 12 years she has learned the ins and outs of wine sales, marketing and customer fulfillment. Currently focusing a large portion of her time to raising her two small children, Heather serves as Director of Special Events and Projects. Heather and her husband Greg Melvin are the proud parents of their beloved daughter Georgia Sally, son Graham Ebon and their sometimes ignored dog Nelson.

David Abreu:

David Abreu is a third generation native of Napa Valley. In 1980 he founded David Abreu Vineyard Management. He focuses on vineyards in the Napa Valley from Oakville to Calistoga and is renowned for his knowledge of the terroirs of the area.

David’s focus on quality is without equal in the Napa Valley. Judicious crop management, rigorous pruning, and an uncompromising goal to produce the finest fruit from our location yields less than two tons per acre each harvest. The signature of an Abreu vineyard is meticulous care, which shows in the precise, even rows of well-maintained vines. He is a perfectionist.

Estate Vineyards / AVA

Jones Family Vineyards unique flavor characteristics grow from our special terroir – a combination of soils and micro-climate. Our three estate vineyards are located in the northern Napa Valley at the base of Howell Mountain about 5 miles north St. Helena. The soils are rocky which allows for excellent drainage, but each vine must burrow deep into the soil to find nutrients and water. Water is also a precious commodity in our land; we irrigate just enough to compensate for the drying effect of the sun.

Our vineyard elevations vary from 600 feet at the base of the estate to about 900 feet at our highest point. Throughout each vineyard the slopes undulate from relatively flat, to almost 35% in slope. Each vine has adapted to its unique location, and the variation in elevation and slope allows for a layering of flavors in the fruit we harvest.

Our warm days and cooler evenings work with the full southern sun exposure to ripen our fruit earlier than most. This stressing of the vines and early ripening reduces our berry and cluster size creating a more extracted and concentrated flavor when our wines are pressed.

10 total acres of vineyards in 3 distinct blocks means each lot has a flavor profile of its own. Seven acres of cabernet sauvignon were planted between 1991 and 1993 on 110R rootstock from clone 8. In 1998 David Abreu designed and planted a 3 acre hillside vineyard of cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc and petit verdot. The fruit is used for blending and to create our second label, The Sisters.

We are privileged to work with some of the strongest talents in winemaking today. David Abreu has managed our vineyard since 1996. Heidi Peterson Barrett made our wines in our first decade (1996-2006) and Thomas Rivers Brown now manages all aspects of our winemaking.